A touching moment unfolded as South and North Korean table tennis players took selfies using a Samsung smartphone.
At the Paris Olympic table tennis venue, the flags of South Korea and North Korea flew side by side.
The third-place match and finals for the mixed doubles table tennis occurred yesterday at the South Paris Arena 4.
In the third-place match, the South Korean duo of Lim Jong Hoon and Shin Yu Bin defeated the Hong Kong team to secure the bronze medal.
In the finals, a surprising twist saw North Korea’s Ri Jong Sik and Kim Kum Yong competing against the world’s top-ranked Chinese team, Wang Chuqin and Sun Yingsha. Despite the formidable competition, Ri and Kim secured the silver medal.
Approaching the medal ceremony with composure, Ri and Kim watched as Shin and Lim, who had won the bronze, took the podium first. The North Korean pair applauded their competitors with visible respect.
Following the bronze medal ceremony, the announcer called out the names of the silver medalists Ri Jong Sik and Kim Kum Yong. As they approached the second-place podium, the athletes from both Koreas exchanged light handshakes and congratulated each other. Liu Guoliang, Deputy President of the International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF), presented the medals to the North Korean players.
The Chinese national anthem resonated through the arena. Following the flag of China, the North Korean and South Korean flags were raised in succession.
The medal ceremony included a special moment, the Victory Selfie, in which medalists captured triumphant moments using Samsung smartphones. Samsung is the only South Korean company that has officially sponsored the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The camera used was the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 Olympic Edition.
Earlier, Keum Ji Hyeon and Park Ha Jun, who won a silver medal in the 10m air rifle mixed team event, became the first South Korean athletes to take selfies with the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 Olympic Edition.
Among the medalists, Lim Jong Hoon, known for his larger build, held the smartphone and adjusted the angles before capturing a selfie. He posed alongside Shin Yu Bin and athletes from North Korea and China, marking a historic moment as North and South Korean players shared a selfie with a South Korean device.
According to Yonhap News, Lim Jong Hoon stated, “Other than congratulating the silver medalists during the handshake, we didn’t have any other conversations.”
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